Conveying and loading apparatus.



F. L. STUART.

GONVEYlNG AND LOADING APPARATUS. APPLICATEON FILED MAY 10. 1916.

Patented J nne 26, 1917 2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

xii/NM xn/ glg gv' Qwuewfot Fran cis L as Sit/air? MM m.

I w his em A @MMAW OFFICE,

FBANCTS LEE STUART, O]? BALTIMORE, MARYLAND.

CONVEYING AND LOADING APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 26, 1917.

Application filed May 10, 1916. Serial No. 96,627.

To all whom it mag concern:

Be it known that I, FRANCIS LEE STUART, a citizen of the United States, residing in Baltimore, Maryland, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Conveying and Loading i p aratus, of which the following is a speci cation.

This invention relates to apparatus for conveying coal, ore and other such material by means of conveyor-belts to apparatus which receives the material so conveyed and delivers it to storage piles, bins, cars, boats, vessels or other receivers and the object of the invention is to provide an apparatus which may be used in connection with an ordinary conveyer-belt and which is so constructed that it may receive material from such conveyer and carry and deliver it to its destination at any desired elevation or in. any desired verticalplane and which is movable to any required place while still in operative relation with the main conveyer.

My improvements are especially useful in loading 'or trimming freight cars, gondolas, box cars or other uch carriers. I

In the preferred way of carrying out my invention I employ a main conveyer-belt, which may be supported and operated in any usual way, and I connect with this belt an apparatus which is movable on a track to deliver at any required place alongside the track. The belt is formed with a looped portion supported on an inclined frame or t'nss mounted on a truck traversing the t; ack, the belt being renved in the inclined,

frame in such manner that the upper end of the looped portion thereof will always deliver at the same elevation, whatever be the position of the truck on the track. The

truck supports a turntable on which is erected a frame supporting an oscillating box or cagewhich in turn supports a frame carrying a belt-conveyer receiving the material from the main conveyer and which is movable endwisein 'the oscillating cagt.

' The frame of said receiving conveyor is so mounted that it may beturned horizontally 'to any desired vertical plane and may have its outer, end raised and lowered to any re quired extent. The outer end of said convcyer frame supports another frame, carrying a delivery conveyer belt which receives material from the vertically oscillating and horizontally adjustable belt and which is itself pivotally connected with the outer end of the frame of said oscillating conveyor in such manner that it may turned about a vertical axis to any required extent to de liver the material in any desired part of a box oar, gondola or other carrier, said dellvery conveyer being so mounted that it occupies at all times a plane parallel with that of the receivingconveyer.

In the accompanying drawings,

F gure 1 is a plan view of conveying and loading apparatus embodying my improvements.

2 shows a side elevation thereof.

Fig. 3 shows an end elevation of loading apparatus.

Fig. 4 is a View of the opposite end. thereof.

The main conveyor belt A is mounted and I he,

guided in any suitable way between the rails;

of the track B. It may conveymateriul from any distant point and may be driven by any well known mechanism. The apparatus X, to which the main conveyor delivers, comprises a truck 0, the wheels 0 of;

which traverse the track B, and this truck 1s connected as shown at 0 with a trussed frame D which at its outer end is supported by wheels d resting on the track. The frame D has an inclined art 03 extending from; the outer end. of the frame to the up er portion E thereof in which is mounted a pulley 0 over which the conveyer-belt extends and from the under side of which the belt passes to a guide pulley e and thence;- to a pulley F over which it passes and then continues in the-manner clearly shown in Fig 2. In this Way a tri per is provided which causes the conveye material to be delivered to the receiving conveyer 'herein; after described. I

The truck C supports a turntable (l and on the turntable is mounted a frame If in which is bun at h a box-like frame or oscillating cage 1 which supports the frame L of horizontally arranged conveyor-belt M;

w The main conveyor delivers to a station'- ary hopper N which in turn delivers-t0 an other hopper l "movable with and discharging onto the conveyor M. Thislattcr 0on4 veyer may be called the receiving couveyer inasmuch it receives the material delivered by the main conveyor-belt. The outer end of the frame I, suppol'ts'tho frame 0 of a conveyer belt P which delivers the material to any desired place or receptacle. The inner end of the frame 0 is mountedto turn about a vertical axis so that the delivery conveyer may be adjusted to any desired angle, but it is always maintained in. a plane parallel. with that of the conveyor M. The frame L of the receiving conveyor is suitably mounted and guided for adjustment lengthwise, horizontally, in the frame or cage K, being suitably guided by rollers m, and the conveyer M carried by this frame is therefore, by reason of the construction be fore described, capable of being oscillated about the axis ii h, of being extended horizontally from this frame and of also being turned about a vertical axis by reason of the fact that it is mounted on. the turntable G.

Various adjustments may thus be obtained for the receiving conveyer, the outer end of which delivers to the hopper M, which feeds the discharging conveyer P. This conveyer is hung from a turntable on the outer end of the frame L and can 'beturned about a ver tical axis to any desired extent. Any suitable means may be employed for operating the mechanism. For instance, the frame H may be turned about its vertical axis by means of a motor Q operatively connected with the turntable in any suitable way. The oscillating frame K may be swung to any desired extent by motou mechanism R suitably connected therewith. The receiving conveyer-belt M may be driven by suitable motor mechanism S and the delivery conveyer-belt P may be driven bysimilar motor mechanism T. These details of construction are not important as my invention relates more particularly to the manner in which the receiving conveyor is mounted and adjusted and delivers to a discharging conveyor mounted for adjustment in the manner before described.

It will be observed, by reference to Fig. 1, that by reason of my improvements cars C on opposite sides of the track may be loaded and trimmed and the delivery conveyer may be moved around to either side of the main conveyor and may be adjusted to the desired angle to deliver either to gondolas, box cars or other carriers. Fig. 1 indicates how the receiving conveyor and the delivery convevcr may be iiisertcd into a box car and how the delivery conveyor may be moved to various positions in the car to deliver thereto and distribute the material therein.

One of the principal objects of my invention is to avoid, as far as possible, the break age of material, and it will be observed that in my apparatus the material passes gently from the main conveyer-bclt to the receiving conveyor on the loading apparatus and that it passes gently from the receiving conveyor to the delivery conveyer. The load ing apparatus can be moved about a horizontal axis so as to hold the outer end of the delivery conveyor close to the pile or point of delivery in such manner that there but lit tle fall for materialv while being delivered.

I claim as my invention:

l. The combination of a car supporting track, a truck supporting traj'ck paralllel therewith, a main belt convcyer parallel with said truck supporting track, a truck supported by and moving on said truck supporting track and provided with a tripper, a loop .t'ormedin the main conveyor belt and. supported by the tripper, and loading apparatus supported by the truck com-- prising a main supporting frame, a receiving conveyor onto which the tripper discharges having a frame mounted to swing about a vertical axis in a horizontal plane and to move endwise in the main frame, and a discharging conveyer belt mounted to turn about a vertical axis and to also move with,

the receiving conveyer endwise relatively to the main supporting frame.

2. Loading apparatus comprising a main supportin frame, a receiving eonveyer belt having a rame mounted to swing in a horizontal plane, to oscillate in a vertical plane, and to move endwise in the main frame, and a discharging conveyor belt mounted to turn with respect to said receiving conveyor frame about a vertical axis and to receive material from the receiving conveyor belt and which is also mounted to move coincidently with said receiving belt frame both vertically and horizontally relatively to the main supporting frame. I

3. The combination of a main eonveyer belt provided with a tripper, a supporting frame for the tripper which is movable to any desired extent while still'maintainin the. operative relation of the tripper wit the main conveyor belt, a receiving conveyor onto which the tripper discharge, a frame for said conveyor mounted on the main supporting frame to swin about a vertical axis, to'oscillate upona iorizontal axis. and which is slidable 1n the maimsuppoi-ling frame, and a discharging conveyer receiving material from the receiving convcycr and which is connected with the frame thereof to turn independently of said re ceiving conveyor about a vertical axis and to also move therewith endwise relatively to the main supporting frame, horizontally about a vertical axis and vertically about a horizontal axis. r

4:. Loading ap iiaratus' comprising a supporting frame, a receiving mnveyer mount ed to swing in a horizontal plane,'to oscillate in a vertical plane, and to move and wise in the supporting frame, and a dis charging conveyor which is supported by the. outer end of said receiving conveyor and is mounted thereon to swing with respect to the receiving conveyor about a vertical axis :1 ml' to also move ocdnoidently with said rocorving convovor "when the latter is adjust ed either l'iorizontally, Vertically or and- 5. The combination of parallel car supportililg tracks, an intermediate track parallel with. the car supporting tracks, a, truck mounted on shid intermediate track, a main conveyor belt connected with said truck and provided with a tripper, a conveyeoreceiv- 'ing matorial from the tripper and mounted to swing; in a horizontal plane from one on to swing" about 2, 

